Summary#

This bill adds a new 15-week Employment Insurance (EI) “attachment benefit” for adoptive parents and parents of children conceived through surrogacy. It also extends job-protected parental leave under the Canada Labour Code for adoption cases to match the new EI weeks. The bill clarifies that surrogacy is treated like adoption for EI and federal labour leave purposes.

• Creates a 15-week EI attachment benefit for adoption and surrogacy cases, on top of existing parental benefits (EI Act s. 22.1; s. 12(3)(a.1)).
• Allows two parents to share these 15 weeks; each parent can claim up to 15 weeks, but combined total cannot exceed 15 (EI Act s. 22.1(7)-(8)).
• Extends the benefit and leave windows if the child is hospitalized, up to set caps (EI Act s. 10(12); s. 22.1(3)-(4); Canada Labour Code s. 207.2(3)).
• Offsets EI benefits if a province pays the parent for the same reason (EI Act s. 22.1(6); s. 152.041(7)).
• Extends federal job-protected adoption leave to up to 80 weeks, with an 88-week family maximum when shared (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(1), (3.1)).

What it means for you#

• Households

  • Adoptive and intended (surrogacy) parents can receive up to 15 additional weeks of EI benefits to support bonding, on top of parental benefits. The benefit window runs from the week the child is placed and ends 52 weeks later, with possible extensions for hospitalization (EI Act s. 22.1(2)-(4)).
  • If two parents claim, they can divide the 15 weeks between them. If they cannot agree, prescribed rules will divide the weeks (EI Act s. 22.1(7)-(8)).
  • If a province pays you for the same reason, your EI benefit may be reduced or eliminated (EI Act s. 22.1(6); s. 152.041(7)).

• Workers (federally regulated employees)

  • Adoption leave under the Canada Labour Code increases to up to 80 weeks; the leave must be taken within 80 weeks after the child comes into your care (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(1), (2.01)).
  • For the same adoption, two employees can share leave up to a family total of 88 weeks; one employee cannot exceed 80 weeks (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(3.1)).
  • Surrogacy is treated as adoption for leave purposes (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(3.2)).
  • If your child is hospitalized and your employer refuses to interrupt leave as requested, your leave is extended by the hospitalization weeks (Canada Labour Code s. 207.2(3)).

• Self-employed (who participate in EI special benefits)

  • A parallel 15-week attachment benefit is added for self-employed persons who are opted into EI special benefits, with the same timing rules, sharing rules with an employee parent, and provincial offset (EI Act s. 152.041; s. 152.05(14)-(15)).

• Employers (federally regulated)

  • Must provide job-protected adoption leave up to 80 weeks and track aggregate limits when two employees share leave for the same child (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(1), (3.1)).
  • Existing rules on deferring a claimant’s waiting period are updated to coordinate when two parents claim different EI special benefits for the same child (EI Act s. 23(5)-(6)).

• Timing

  • Applies to EI benefit periods that start on or after Royal Assent, or that have not ended before Royal Assent, but only for weeks of benefits that begin on or after that day (Transitional Provision).
  • Does not change existing maternity or parental benefit rules for birth parents (no explicit amendments beyond coordination and references).

Expenses#

• Estimated net cost: Data unavailable.

• Key points

  • No direct parliamentary appropriation in the bill; EI benefits are paid from the EI Operating Account funded by employer and employee premiums (structure unchanged).
  • EI will now pay up to 15 more weeks per adoption/surrogacy case, subject to offsets where provinces pay for the same reason (EI Act s. 22.1(6); s. 152.041(7)).
  • The Canada Labour Code leave change has no direct cash cost to the federal government but may affect employer staffing in federally regulated sectors (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1).

• Fiscal notes or official costings: Data unavailable.

Proponents' View#

• Improves parity: Adoptive and intended (surrogacy) parents would receive a 15-week benefit comparable to the 15 weeks of EI maternity benefits for birth mothers (EI Act s. 12(3)(a.1); s. 22.1).
• Supports early bonding and stability: A defined 15-week period focused on attachment, with extensions if a child is hospitalized, reflects adoption/surrogacy complexities (EI Act s. 22.1(2)-(4); s. 10(12)).
• Clear rules and coordination: Sharing caps, waiting-period coordination, and provincial offsets reduce double payment and clarify family planning of leave (EI Act s. 22.1(6)-(8); s. 23(5)-(6); s. 152.05(14)-(15)).
• Inclusive of surrogacy: Explicitly recognizes surrogacy under provincial law, aligning EI and labour leave with modern family forms (EI Act s. 6(1.1); Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(3.2)).
• Job protection: Extending adoption leave under the Canada Labour Code to 80 weeks gives federally regulated workers time to use the new EI benefit without risking their jobs (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(1), (2.01), (3.1)).

Opponents' View#

• Cost pressure on EI: Adding 15 weeks of benefits per adoption/surrogacy case could increase EI expenditures and, over time, contribute to higher EI premiums for workers and employers. No official cost estimate is provided in the bill (Data unavailable).
• Administrative complexity: Verifying eligibility tied to provincial adoption/surrogacy laws and applying provincial offsets may slow claims and create uneven experiences across provinces (EI Act s. 6(1.1); s. 22.1(6)).
• Uneven coverage by workplace: The extended job-protected leave applies only to federally regulated employers; most workers under provincial jurisdiction rely on provincial employment standards that this bill does not change (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1).
• Narrow scope concerns: The benefit targets legal adoption and surrogacy placements; other caregivers (e.g., kinship or long-term foster placements without adoption) are not included, which may raise equity questions (EI Act s. 22.1(1)).
• Employer impact: Longer potential absences in federally regulated sectors may increase scheduling and training costs, especially when two employees share extended adoption leave up to the 88-week family maximum (Canada Labour Code s. 206.1(3.1)).